Kevin's Healing Journey: Dear Mustard Seed Market

Friday, August 10, 2012

Dear Mustard Seed Market

My son and I shop at your Montrose market every week, often on the same day and at the same time. My son, Kevin is seven years old and is diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. After a stressful and discouraging first two years of his life on the traditional path, we found a better way to help him on his healing journey which of course includes a natural and nutritious diet.

We live in Cuyahoga Falls, and have a few markets available to us to purchase our natural and nutritious food but a few years ago we discovered that Kevin LOVES your store! We are willing to go “the extra mile” because we enjoy and look forward to our visit to your market every week. In fact, there are times when we leave the house and if we are not going to your market and I drive another way, Kevin protests always wanting to visit your market.

The people that you have working in your market are caring and friendly. From the moment we walk into your market, the employee stocking produce will greet Kevin with a smile, as we walk throughout the market we are greeted by more smiles and friendly faces. And at the checkout, cashiers and baggers will greet Kevin and some even call him by name and give him a “high five” or handshake, especially Dave.

I have been telling this story all summer and I still get happy tears in my eyes when I think of the kindness that we receive in your store from a particular employee in your market, Christina. If Christina is working when we do our shopping and not busy at the time we check out, she will take time to greet Kevin. Kevin does not speak yet, but I am teaching him some basic sign language. Christina knows and uses sign language with Kevin. She will often ask Kevin if he would like a piece of fruit and will use the sign for the fruit she offers him. Well it was a very proud day when Kevin was able to sign back to her that he wanted the apple. And I laughed the day when we came up the last shopping aisle towards the check out and Kevin saw Christina and immediately signed apple to her before she even had a chance to greet him! I love that Kevin feels special and even receives an occasional treat that he can actually have. Christina is a true gem and I appreciate and am so grateful for the time and attention that she gives to Kevin. She will be forever known to us as the “Apple Lady”.

The organic produce and products you stock in your store are top quality but the real reason that we shop in your store is for the top quality employee’s that bring a smile to my son’s face every time we shop in your market. It means more to us to shop where my son is seen as a person, receiving dignity and respect, rather than going to a chain store that is closer in location to us, where we are just another face in the crowd.

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My Blog

This blog was created to keep our family and friends updated on Kevin's healing journey. It is also our hope that others may find this blog to give help and hope to other delayed kids.

About Kevin

They told us Kevin would never walk or talk. But with lots of prayers, hard work, and extra hands, he began walking when he was four years old and we continue to have faith and hope as we wait patiently for his speech to develop. Kevin is now eight years old. He is diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy due to a brain-injury he had before birth that was caused by a stroke. In 2006, before Kevin was 2 years old, we found Glenn Doman’s book "What To Do About Your Brain-Injured Child" that had answers to help children with special needs and developmental delays. We began an individualized home treatment program for Kevin immediately and have been dedicated to our program ever since. We spent three years with the Doman family at The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential (IAHP) and now we are with Matthew and Carol Newell at The Family Hope Center (FHC). Twice a year we return to Philadelphia where Kevin receives a neurological evaluation to determine the progress he has made in the last six months. Then they provide us with an individualized, program that puts me in charge to help Kevin develop and reach his fullest potential.

Do You Know a Delayed Child?

The best recommendation we can give to another parent with a special needs or developmentally delayed child (brain-injured, brain-damaged, mentally retarded, mentally deficient, cerebral-palsied, epileptic, autistic, athetoid, hyperactive, attention deficit disordered, developmentally delayed, or down's) is to read Glenn Doman's book What To Do About Your Brain-Injured Child and/or Dr. Coralee Thompson and Dr. Philip Maffetone's book Healthy Brains, Healthy Children. By simply reading these books, you will gain valuable information to help your child which will begin to unlock the potential your child has. And best of all you will learn that there are other options to helping your child that you can do yourself. We would also highly recommend attending the parent course at FHC or IAHP. To read how our journey began and the successful progress Kevin has had refer to the January 2010 blog archive.